


A Love for Old Things

by rapono



Category: Dead by Daylight (Video Game)
Genre: Fear of Rejection, Love Confessions, M/M, challenge, gay grandpas
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-11
Updated: 2019-09-11
Packaged: 2020-10-14 11:56:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,362
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20600387
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rapono/pseuds/rapono
Summary: Written for a ship competition. (Go Team Hooks!)Prompt: Bill/Ace - Kink, Confess, Angst, or Death.Scenario: confess - Ace realizes he's fallen in love with the old soldier but is certain that his feelings will be rejected. Several times he tries to get it off his chest, but chickens out until...





	A Love for Old Things

**Author's Note:**

> Wasn't allowed to post this until the event was over (which we didn't win sadly), so now I can finally show this to the world.
> 
> Not my best work as I kinda wrote it just before the deadline, but not terrible. I might end up doing another Bace fic in the future. Gotta love my gay grandpas.

Ace wasn’t sure when he fell in love. It wasn’t when they first met. Ace had tried to be smooth and slick in their first meeting, but the old man hadn’t liked him, told him to take his suave ass somewhere else, there was no time for his shit in the trial.

Ace wouldn't admit that it had hurt him a little bit.

Bill was harsh, but not without good intention. He struck through Ace’s charm and confidence, cutting him down to size, never taking any of his sweet talk nor affected by his charm.

So Ace learned to leave him alone. 

He harbored no ill feelings towards the older man, he knew his charisma didn’t always work on some, nor always appreciated. Still, he didn’t avoid him, he just didn’t seek him out, nor try to strike up a conversation. 

As time went on, Ace found himself admiring him, the old man never taking shit from nobody, strong and resilient, putting his life on the line if it meant someone else got out alive.

One match, they'd been the only two remaining. He’d honestly expected to be left on the hook to bleed, for Bill to not rescue him, especially with the killer not far away. After all, Bill didn’t seem to like him very much.

But he didn’t.

Bill didn’t get out that trial, and Ace barely did. 

He felt terrible.

He didn’t deserve to be rescued. Bill didn't deserve to die for him.

Guilt eating away at him, Ace remained quiet in his return, sitting alone on a log, away from everyone. He didn’t understand, he thought that Bill hated him.

He couldn’t help but let out a sigh of relief when the old man finally turned up. He got up from his seat, cautiously approaching him.

Bill raised an eyebrow. “What you want?”

Ace couldn’t help but feel a little nervous. “I uh, I just wanted to say thank you, for saving me last trial. You should've let me bleed out and taken the hatch.”

“Nonsense, nobody gets left behind.”

“Oh, of course.”

Ace flashed his best smile, hiding the nervousness in his eye behind his shades, and walked away without another word.

He didn’t understand. Why did he feel so nervous around him. He was just like any other survivor, one on the altruistic side, like Claudette. He didn’t feel nervous around Claudette.

Then why did being around him make his heart race? Why did Bill's opinion of him matter so much to him? He never really cared when someone else was annoyed with him, or when that detective gave him disapproving looks.

It was when Ace had managed to hit a ruin skill check, and Bill praised him, did it finally click. A warm fuzzy feeling erupted in his chest, one he doubted he would ever feel again, its warmth spreading throughout his limbs. There was no doubt about it, he was hopelessly in love with William Overbeck.

And that terrified him.

He had almost no doubt in his mind that his love was unrequited, that sharing his secret would only break his heart.

So he said nothing, bottling up his feelings inside like a can of pop, pressure building up with every jostle and shake. And he knew, with a sinking dread, that eventually it would burst.

So he started to avoid him. If Bill was working on a generator, he'd find another one. If Bill offered to heal him, he’d politely decline. (He probably couldn’t handle him having his hands all over him anyways.) Even if his foot was stuck in a bear trap, he wouldn’t let Bill help him out. But he still went to unhook him, he would never leave him to die. 

And after every trial, Ace would sit on his own log, away from most, but most importantly, away from Bill. He’d fiddle with his deck of cards, practicing card tricks so he wouldn’t forget. It almost became a comfort, a piece of his life before this.

Sure, he was happy the fog was his ultimate escape from his debts, but still, he couldn’t help but reminisce of a warm bed and warm food.

He was too focused on his tricks to hear footsteps approaching.

“Ace.”

Ace shrieked, jumping and dropping his cards, the sound of Bill way it his voice spooking him. Taking a moment to catch his breath and collect his cards, he turned to look at Bill, who looked down at him with a worried expression.

“You okay?”

(No.)

“Yeah, I’m, I’m fine. You just scared the shit outta me. Guess an old soldier like you would be good at sneaking.”

Bill gave a sort of muffled chortle, concern still in his eyes, but more relaxed now. Those who had been watching them started to get back to their previous engagements.

“Sort about that, I’ve just got a question for you.” He took a seat next to Ace, and he felt his pulse quicken.

“Sure, whatcha got?”

“Do you hate me?”

What.

“Wha- no! What makes you think that?”

“You’ve been avoiding me. You won’t let me heal you, you don't help me work on generators, and you try to dissuade me from unhooking you.”

“O-oh, riiiight.” 

Ace scratched at the back of his neck, feeling embarrassed. Of course Bill would notice, he shouldn’t have been so obvious. And of course he would fuck it up and make him think he hated him.

Bill probably hated him more now.

“If you don’t hate me, then mind telling me the hell is up with that?”

“No.” He whispered the words, unsure if Bill could hear. He didn’t want to tell him, he couldn’t, not after fucking up so badly.

Would his heart ever glue itself together after it would be shattered?

“Fine, don't tell me. If you’re going to insist on making things difficult for me, I won’t keep trying.” 

The older man started to get up, and his can broke. Carbonated emotions burst through the aluminum, and Ace knew the time had come.

So swallowing his pride, he called out to him.

“Bill wait!” 

William stopped, sighing heavily before turning back to him.

“Are you gonna explain yourself?”

Ace’s heart pounded wildly in his chest, almost as if he was standing next to a killer. He took in a shaky breath, searching for the right words to use, before in a slightly hushed tone, he spoke once more.

“Willaim Overbeck, I think I’m in love with you.”

The moment the words left his lips, his hands wrapped around his mouth, too late to stop him. He stared up at Bill, frozen in fear, his stomach sinking in a wild ocean of shame and regret.

Bill's cigarette dropped from his mouth as his mouth went agape, a few sparks shooting off s it coiled ith the dirt below. He seemed unable to speak, Ace’s confession having shut him up.

The two stood there in uncomfortable silence, neither daring to speak up. 

After what might've been a few minutes, Bill seemed to have regained control of his jaw, gaping like a fish before breaking the silence.

“Well that explains alot.”

Bill laughed, his stature relaxing, as a smile grew on his face. The sound was like magic, breaking the curse seizing his chest, melting the overwhelming anxiety away.

He took his hands off his mouth.

“You know, you ain’t half bad yourself. Usually positive and well kept.”

Ace felt his face heat up as he couldn’t help but blush.

“Thank you.”

“It's no problem. I know I haven’t always been kind to you, but I might have made an incorrect assumption when I first met you.” Bill took his seat next to Ace once more, this time shuffling just a little closer.

“So, why don’t you show me that card trick you were doing earlier?”

Ace beamed, as he took out and shuffled his lucky deck, taking a moment to recollect his favorite tricks.

It had been awhile since someone has asked him to perform, and Ace was glad to put on a show. He just hoped his fluttered heart wouldn’t prove to be too much of a distraction.


End file.
